Remove commanders from sex assault decisions

Updated 5:30 pm, Monday, May 12, 2014

Vote on the amendment by Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., shown talking with military sexual assault survivors.

Vote on the amendment by Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., shown talking with military sexual assault survivors.

Photo: Mark Wilson, Getty Images

Remove commanders from sex assault decisions

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SAN ANTONIO — Less than a week after the Pentagon revealed a surge in the number of sexual assaults reported, a key House committee rejected the single most effective tool for stemming the epidemic.

The House Armed Services Committee rejected, 34-28, a measure that would have removed military commanders from the chain of command in deciding whether such cases should be prosecuted.

In its “Twice Betrayed” series and in other reporting, the Express-News and other outlets have detailed how commanders have been a big part of the problem. Their commands have not just failed to prosecute rapists in the ranks but also punished those making the accusations.

There have been misdiagnoses of mental illness, forced dismissals and refusal to treat victims for post-traumatic stress disorder while in uniform and out. Victims have been forced to serve alongside their rapists and denied transfers.

And even with this surge, the military says it under represents the problem because of refusal of victims to step forward. While most of the victims reporting last year were women, the military is concerned that both women and men are declining to report the crime.

And victim advocates credibly argue that a big reason for this is fear of reprisal within the command. This is why the decision to prosecute should be taken out of the hands of commanders and put into the hands of trained prosecutors.

An amendment by Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., in the House would have accomplished this. Democratic New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has been trying to accomplish the same thing on the Senate side. The military services have resisted.

The military's main argument against removing commanders from the process is based on the need for the line of authority to remain in place, but with this many cases that line has been lost.

The House measure was offered as an amendment to the annual defense bill. If the House Rules Committee allows it, it can be offered on the floor during the bill's consideration.

“Progress within the military on this issue has come too slow and at too high of a cost to our men and women in uniform,” said Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, a member of the Armed Services Committee.

Right. Advocates for this measure should not give up on it. Take it to the floor. Force a vote.